Jason Phu
b.1989 in Sydney, Australia
Lives and works in Sydney, Australia
Jason Phu is a practicing artist working across a wide range of mediums including printmaking, painting and performance. His work references folk tales, family history and funny jokes. Sometimes it includes imagery from comics, cartoons and Chan paintings.
Phu studied at COFA, Sydney graduating with honours in 2011 and also studied at NSCAD, Nova Scotia. Phu won the prestigious Sir John Sulman Prize in 2015, and the Freedman Foundation Travelling Art Scholarship, also in 2015. He has been a finalist in the Sulman Prize (2023, 2022, 2019, 2018), The Archibald Prize (2023, 2015, 2014), The Wynne Prize (2023), the Ramsay Art Prize and Australia’s premier prize for emerging artists (2017), the NSW Emerging Visual Arts Fellowship (2017), and the Brett Whiteley Travelling Art Scholarship (2016). In 2017, Phu was awarded the West Space commission, presenting the significant solo exhibition My parents met at the fish market. In 2018, he presented work in the Dobell Drawing Biennale at the Art Gallery of New South Wales, The Burrangong Affray at the 4A Centre for Contemporary Asian Art and Primavera 2018 at the Museum of Contemporary Art (MCA), Sydney. In 2019, he was awarded the inaugural Art Assembly commission for the Sydney Opera House. In 2021, Phu was the recipient of the $80,000 Mordant Family Moving Image Award (ACMI) and pre- sented work in a group show titled ‘The Way We Eat’ at The Art Gallery of New South Wales. In 2022, he completed a major commissioned work at the ACE Hotel and was one of the 8 artists selected for the 2022 Macfarlane Commissions at Australian Centre for Contemporary Art (ACCA). In 2023, he was selected as one of the Artists for The National 4 at Carriageworks as well as a major installation/performance for Dark MOFO, Hobart, he was also a finalist in all three Art Gallery of New South Wales prizes: the Archibald, Wynne and Sulman Prize. This year, he was awarded Vogue Living Artist of the Year. In May 2024, he presented new works in Taipei for Taipei Dangdai Art Fair with CHALK HORSE, as well as a brand-new installation of his 2022 artwork, everyone is dead, except for me. everything is futile, and i am tired. i wait in my little house, for the winter to take me. at HOTA Gallery, Surfers Paradise.
Phu’s work has been informed by several China-based residencies at CAFA, Beijing; DAC Studios, Chongqing; and Organhaus. He has had numerous solo exhibitions in Australia including CHALK HORSE, Sydney; STATION Gallery, Sydney and Mel- bourne; Westspace, Melbourne; CCAS Gorman Arts Centre, Canberra; ALASKA Projects, Sydney; and ACE Open, Adelaide.
Collections: Art Gallery of New South Wales, Artbank, Bathurst Regional Gallery.
